Automatic rail-joint fastening



June 15 1926. 1,589,098

M. BETKE AUTOMATIC RAIL' JOINT FASTENING Filed March 19, 1926 WIM 66%@www Patented June 15, 1926:?

UNITED STATES insane MICHAEL BETKE, or DENVER, COLORADO.

3 j AUTOMATIC RAIL-JOINT EAsTENINe.

An object ot this invention is to provide improved means for tighteningthe nuts ot rail joint astenings by means of devices carried by saidjoint and operated by the passage of wheels thereoif'er.

A further object ot this invention 1s. to provide a hinged constructionof operating plate and impact head in an automatic railjoint fastening.

Mv invention consists in the construction, arrangement and combinationof elements hereinafter set forth, pointed out in my claims andillustrated by the accompanyingdrawings, in which- Figure 1 is a sideelevation ot abutting end portions of railway rails to which myimprovements are applied, a portionvotpv a wheel being shownsurinounting said rails. Figure 2 is a plan of the same, the wheel beingomitted. Figure 3 is a crosssection on they indicated line 39-3 of-Figure 2. Figure 4 is a crosssection on the indicated line 4 4 ofFigure 2. Figure 5 is a detail cross section, on an enlarged scale, ofthe operating plate and attached devices. Figure 6 is a detail sideelevation of one of the units of my improvement, certain parts beingbroken away to expose concealed `elements.

In the construction of my improvement as shown, the numeral 10designates either portion ot abutting railway rails, forming a joint.Fishplates 11, 12 are mounted on said rails and overlap said joint 1n acommon manner, the web or vertical portion of the fishplate 12 being ofmaterially greater thickness than that ot the ishplate 11, .so as tolill the space at one side of therails and bring the outer tace of therlshplate 12 into the same vertical plane as the outside edge of thetread of said rails. The rails 10 and ishplates 11 and 12 are formedwith registering bolt holes and bolts '13, in this instance four innumber, are mounted through said holes with their threaded end portionsextending beyond the fishplate 12. Nuts 14 each `formed with a ratchetwheel base portion 15, are threaded on the bolts 13 and are adapted tobe employed to clamp the shplates to the rail portions. Recessed blocks16, in this` instance tive in number, are mountedon the outer face ofthe tishplate 12 between the bolts 13 andaresecured to -d iishplate byrivets 17, the inner heads irl siesta ceuntersunlt in the dell; te'saniert enteran# 'rail portions.

Application filed March 19, 1926. Serial No. 95,856. i

iupted seating of said iishplate against the web ot the rail portions.rFhe blocks 1GV are evenly spaced apart with their edges parallel toform slide bearings and the upper ends ot' saidfblocks project slightlyabove the edge ot the lishplate 12 and bear against the outer edge ofthe tread of the "lhe blocks intermediate the end portions of theiishplate are alike in form and are each provided with` two parallelrecesses opening against the tace of said ishplate while the end blocksare narrower than the intermediate blocks and have but a single recesseach. Plates 18, in this instance four in number, are each formed withan elongated hole 19 and a laterally projecting head 20 of less widththan the plate and are slidingly mounted in the slide bearings providedbetween the edges of the blocks 16, the bolts 13 passing through the,elongatedv holes 19 and said' plates being positioned by the ratchetwheel portion 15 of the nuts 14 against the outer tace of the ishplate12. Impact heads 21, of the same width as the plates 18, are formed withcurved upper faces adapted to be engaged by the tread portions oi Wheelsand are also formed with downwardly-extending arms 22,

adapted to embrace the heads 2O of the plates 18. Pins or rivets 23 passthrough registering holes in each of the heads 2O and the embracing`arms`22, thus hingedly securing an impact head 21 to each of the plates18.' The upper outer edge of each head 2O is curved concentric with theaxis of its pin 23 and the `top of said head is inclined slightly at atangent to said curve, to the end that the impact head 21 may be rotatedabout the pin 23 to the position shown in dotted lines in Figure 5 andalso to provide that said impact head may seat directly on Y the head 2Owhen in upright position rather than on the ends et the pin 23. Detents24, ot elbow shape,` are each formed with a projecting'stud 25 adjacentthe elbow and are secured to the plates ,18 with the short arm of saiddetent below and engaging the projecting lower margin o1" the head 20 bymeans of said stud, which passes through a hole in the plate 18 and isriveted behind said plate. The longer arm of the detent 24 extendsvertically along the tace of the plate 18 adjacent thef ratchetwheelportion i5 'f the. nut 14a ne Cil ing one les vertical and of alength equal to the width ot' a slide bearing; and the other leg'horizontal, notched to clear the short arm ot the detent 24; and ol' alength greater than the width oi a slide bearing, are mountedtransversely oi" cach slide bearing` with the horizontal lee beneath andenger-ing the lower ends ot the arms and extending; through openings inthe side margins of the blocks 1G into and across the recesses withinsaid blochs, as is clearly shown in Figure 6. Expansive coil springs 2Sare confined within the recesses in the blocks 1G and each ,spring` hasone end bearing' against an end ol the angle bar 2T and the other end enraging the bottom ot its recess or bearing1r against a de'=ce adjacentthereto. The springs 28, bei. c; mounted under some compression, tend atall times to torce the angle bar 27 upward, which bar, through its engagement with the arms tends to litt the impact head :21, attached plate18 and detent 2l. interposed between one end of the angle bar E27 and tle end of its rcspective springl 28 is a flat bar 29 which extendslaterally along` the lower tace of the angle bar and engages beneath theend t the short arm of the detent 2li, to the end that any displacementof the detcnt 2l will cause increased compression oit a spring` 28 whichwill tend to restore the detent to its original position at all times. Apawl 30 is pivoted for rocker bearing against the bottom ot the springlrecess on the detent side ot the slide bearing and is positioned in theblock 1G by means ot' a pin or studs 31, the toe ot the pawl being`extended slightly upward and laterally across the lower end ot the plate1S to engagement with one orP the teeth ot the ratchet wheel 15 toprevent rotation tendingto unscrew the nut 14, while the heelo't thepavvl is ioi'mcd to a `flattened bearing` adapted to receive the lowerend o't one of the springs QS and be depressed thereby.

When my device is mounted ttor practical use, the nuts 14 are tightenedwith the plates 1 in their lon-'ermost position and the springs 28 undercompression as illustrated by three oi the devices in Figure 1.Unscrewinp; ot the nuts la is prevented by ratchet en j ment of thepawls 30, but it' and when the pressure ererted against the plate 18 b vthe nut 11i is diminished and the nut tends to loosen, the pressure ofthe springs against the angle bar 27 forces said bar upwardly andthereby raises the impact head above the top ot the rail head, thedctent 2l ratcheting upwardly into a new engagen'ient with the teeth otthe ratchet wheel 15. Passage of a car, locomotive or the like along`the rails will again depress the impact head through engagement ot saidhead with the tread portion ol a wheel, the detent, in its downwardmovement, rotating and tightening the nut lil which ratchets past thepawl SO into new engagement with said pawl. his operation is repeateduntil the nut 14 is tightened sulliciently to hold the plate 18 againstthe pressure ot the springs 28 and thus insures that the rail-joint isalways tightly bolted together. lt VFor any reason the wheels should bemoving' laterally ol the rails and the edge ol one of said wheels shouldstrike the inner tace ot the impact head 2l, said head would rotateoutwardly about the pin Q3, the squared outer, lower corners ot the armsdepressing the angle bar I( against the springs 28, said displacement otthe springs tendingl to return the impact head to upright position whenthe wheel has passed. It is to be noted that all strains and pressuresare transmitted trom surface to surface, the pins, rivets and studs inthe operating' devices servingonly as pivots.

I claim as my invention- 1. An automatic rail-joint fastening comprisinga lishplate havingits outer tace in the same vert-leal plane as theouter edge of the rail tread, bolts connectingT said lishplate andrails, ratcheted nuts on said bolts outslde said tishplate, laterallyprojecting,` blocks on said lishplate intermediate said bolts, operatingplates apertured to receive said bolts mounted for verticalreciprocation between said blocks and adapted to be contained betweensaid ratcheted nuts and the tace of said tishplate, means carried bysaid plates and engaging said ratcheted nuts for rotating said nuts in atighteningdirection, means carried by said blocks tor preventing reverserotation of said nuts and means also carried by said blocks forelevating said operating` plates and attached devices.

2. In a device ot the character described having abutting; railport-ions, lishplates adapted to overlie the joint between said railportions and bolts adapted to clamp said lishplates to said rails, thecombination ot a lishplate having its outer tace in the saine verticalplane as the outer edge ot the rail tread, vertical slide bearings onthe outer tace ot said lishplate and intersectcd by said bolts.ratcheted nuts on said bolts, operating plates mounted in said ,slidebearings between said ratcheted nuts and the outer tace ot' saidlishplataan impact head pivotally secured to each of said operatingplates, means carried by said operating plates for rotating theratcheted nuts in a tightening direction, means for preventing reverserotation ot said nuts and yielding;- means tor maintaining' theoperating plates and attached devices in raised position.

3. In a device ot' the character described having abutting rail portionsforming a, joint, tishplates adapted to overlie said joint and boltsconnecting said rails and fishplates, the combination of a tishplatehaving its outer face in the same vertical plane as the outer edge ofthe rail tread, vertical, laterally projecting blocks on the outer faceoi' said lishplate spaced to form slide bearings intersected by saidbolts, expansive coil springs within said blocks, operating platesmounted for vertical reciprocation in said slide bearings betweenratcheted nuts carried by said bolts and the face of said lishplate,means carried by said plates for rotating said ratcheted nuts, means forpreventing reverse rotation of said nuts and means transversely of theslide bearing engaging said operating plates and supported by saidsprings for maintaining said operating plates and attached devices inraised position.

4. In a device of the character described, an operating plate formedwith an elongated aperture and a laterally projecting head, an impacthead seated on and pivotally secured to said laterally projecting headand a detent pivotally mounted on said plate and engaging beneath saidlaterally projecting head.

5. In a device of the character described,

i i a vertical slide bearing, an operating plate mounted for verticalreciprocation in said bearing, an impact head secured to said plate andadapted for lateral displacement relative thereto, expansive coilsprings housed at either side of said bearing, said springs comprising ayielding mounting for said operating plate and attached devices,

Vone ci' said springs also being adapted to pokand State of Coloradothis 23rd day of February, 1926.

MICHAEL BETKE.

